Arkansas’ horrible start to basketball Saturday is best represented by an 18-0 Missouri score in the first six minutes that proved to be an insurmountable deficit.
The Razorbacks (11-7, 0-5 SEC) never recovered, losing by exactly that margin in an 83-65 loss that sent John Calipari’s team into the depths of the SEC cellar.
But the slow start continued, especially in a category that has turned into a consistent weakness for Arkansas in conference play.
The Hogs didn’t make their first free throw attempt until 11:34 remained. They finished the night 4 of 8 from the line and failed to record 15 free throw attempts in three of their five SEC games this season.
Overall, Arkansas ranks 14th in the league, averaging 18.6 free throw attempts per game against SEC competition, which is an inflated number based on the outlier performance when the Razorbacks shot 35 free throws against Florida.
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“Maybe some of these teams are really good at protecting bumps and everything else,” Calipari said. “But we’re driving the ball and the idea is to foul. So we’re the only team doing that. Everyone seems to be doing that body check and everything else. So we’re going to keep driving and see if they will call them and we will see.
Arkansas’ offense needs a boost, and Calipari clearly thinks it could come with more free throws from 15 feet to the basket, even though the Razorbacks are shooting just 70.8 percent from the line.
However, this was not a core belief at the start of the year.
After going 20 for 25 from the free throw line against Pacific on Nov. 18, Calipari said he doesn’t like games where his team is constantly sent to the line because it allows the other team to to rest. He wants the opposition to have heavy legs at the end of the match.
But that changed in January as Arkansas struggled to give itself a chance in those SEC losses. The easy points have dried up and the toughest conference in America is starting to steal the soul of the Hogs.
“The whole league is physical and it has good players and good coaches,” Calipari said. “It’s a tough league. We’re going to have to find solutions and they’re not saying you have this game coming up, no. And it’s everyone in the league, not just Arkansas. Everyone has very good matches against teams and you have to understand that.
The Razorbacks will return home Wednesday night and look to emerge from this conference malaise against No. 23 Georgia, where Calipari’s challenge to get to the line further will face another tough test.
Only one team in the SEC allows fewer free throw attempts per game than the Bulldogs.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas basketball and John Calipari crave more free throws amid SEC slide
